Laurie Fry’s many trips through the trails and fields of the Methow Valley are the inspiration for her pastel paintings. “I hope that my portraits of our local landscape, ranging from mountain to valley to river, somehow capture the essence or spirit of the places I visit,” says Laurie.

In Gloria Spiwak’s creations, a gang of enamel frog pins inhabit a wetland, joined by loons, otters, dragonflies, butterflies and water lilies. “This was what was inspired by nature for me,” Gloria explains, “an active and healthy pond.”

Gloria’s enamels are ground glass fired to either a metal back of copper or fine silver. A few of her pieces will be enamels fired on to clear glass or enamel paints fired on to glass. Gloria will also have some enamel earrings done in “plique-a-jour” which are like small stained glass pieces.

“For me, Spirit of Place is an exploration of our world through paint and paper,” says Patty Yates. “The touch of first sun on mountain tops with the last snow of the season was where I started this spring. I’ll also have paintings from my ‘lost pond’ series, a meditation on changing habitats in the Methow.”